Monster High Arena

I've posted these on Deviantart and a different MH board, so if they look familiar, that's why.

Anyhow! These are my customs. I hope you like them! Most of them were done as gifts for friends and are based on their character ideas, so I don't claim full ownership over the designs. I did draw all of the art shown, though.

If it's all right, because this is so image-heavy I'm going to break it into multiple posts. The first post will be dolls I've made for my own personal collection, and the second will be dolls that are gifts to friends. Then from then on I'll do progress pictures on dolls I'm currently working on.

Post Merge: May 08, 2015, 02:19:48 PM

These are the dolls I made for myself:

Draconia St. George, daughter of the Avalon dragons was my first custom. She was completed in 2012, before Jinafire Long was released. I found it funny that both the Monster High designers and myself thought up a dragon ghoul with a gold, green and purple colour scheme. ;)

(https://i.imgur.com/FlQqe6i.jpg)

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Scarilyn and Abnorma-Gene Moanroe are the daughters of the Radioactive Mutant. The doll glows in the dark.

(https://i.imgur.com/jX5IYo8.png)

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Kai Merha is the (immensely difficult to photograph) son of a Mad Scientist. He is the result of a lab accident transforming a teenager into a monsterous mash-up of a chimera.

(https://i.imgur.com/sxO3qD0.jpg)

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Atomica Servo is the daughter of the Automatons. Specifically, the daughter of Future from the silent film Metropolis. She was made in 2013, before Elle Eedee was a glimmer in any creator's eyes, and again I'm sort of surprised at the elements that are similar between the two!

(https://i.imgur.com/vWCYJAt.jpg)

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Rorrim "Rory" Bludworth is the son of Bloody Mary. He is also immensely difficult to photograph, on account of being so shiny.

Okay, these are all AMAZING. Not only do you have great taste in pets, you are an incredible customizer!

Trying to decide on a favorite but it's really difficult... I think Rorrim Bludworth might be my absolute favorite. The outfits are incredible too. Did you make them yourself??

What kind of paint do you use for their faces and bodies? Also, painted joints!? What sorcery is this?? How do you prevent the paint from rubbing? :0

The outfits are all hand-made, yes. On many of them, I designed the fabric patterns in photoshop and printed them out on printer-ready fabric, which is an AMAZING invention I recommend all customizers check out. It's literally an 8 x 11" sheet of cotton fabric bonded to a piece of paper that can be run through your inkjet printer.

Draconia's dress, Abnorma-Gene's DNA-pattern shirt, Kai Merha's pants, Atomica's dress and Rory's vest were all made using this technique.

You can get the fabric here:http://www.amazon.com/Jacquard-Fabric-Cotton-Sheets-Pack/dp/B002201YEC/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1431441368&sr=8-1&keywords=printer+fabric

Most of the bodies are painted either with Citadel brand acrylics, or Montana Gold brand acrylic spray paint. Montana Gold spraypaint is AMAZING stuff. It's acrylic, so it can be used on the heads, hands and feet without it remaining forever sticky. Rory is painted with the Montana Gold chrome spray paint, head to toe. He didn't even require a top coat.

To prevent paint chipping, there are some preparations I do before painting. The bodies are cleaned with alcohol to remove any oil migration from the plastic and parts that feel rubbery (hands, boy feet, sometimes forearms and legs) are soaked for a day in alcohol. This migrates out the plasticizers and makes them much more stable for spraying with primer. I lightly sand the joint areas so paint will adhere even better, as well.

100% I recommend priming the bodies with a plastic-friendly primer, like Krylon or Testors brand primer. I do not prime the heads, though. The vinyl does not like primer and will remain sticky forever.

I haven't had any issues with paint rubs/chipping using this technique. I also do things a little bit backwards; I paint the heads AFTER rooting is finished so that I don't risk rubbing or messing up the faceups.

both your art and the customs made out of them look great! I love how the art details were transferred onto the actual dolls, great work!

also, that printable fabric is a great idea! so far IRL I've only come across printable paper that can be iron-transferred, I'll have to go check our stores for that fabric. though the inkjet makes me wonder... will the print be waterproof, or can it be somehow fixed to be waterproof? I do not plan to make swimwear for my dollies and then actually make them do heavy swimming exercises, but water can accidentally drip on clothes during an outdoor photoshoot, or they might get stained which would have to be removed somehow. do you have any experience with this?

The inkjet fabric is specially treated so it can be subjected to water. In fact, after printing son brands advise you to rinse out the fabric to remove excess ink. They recommend hand-washing after printing. The fabric is originally intended for quilting so it's pretty versatile.

One thing to note; it is only a woven cotton. I have not found a knit printable fabric, in that case I rely on iron-on transfers, like the "Hex Games" logo on Chases shirt.

Instead of top-coating them with dullcote, I used a Krylon glow in the dark spray paint over a flueorescent yellow paint. It adhered better than I could have hoped and imparts a REALLY strong, long-lasting glow.

I liked Rorrim when I saw this thread. Then I saw his bio in another thread and truly fell in love! He is absolutely perfect. He is now an official MH character at chez justkitter! I just wish he lived here :cry:

Thanks! I made him as sort of a dare. I had seen so many bad Child of Bloody Mary OCs, usually falling on the gross side and dripping with blood, that I challenged myself to see if I could come up with one that could fit into the "real" Monster High world. It means a lot to hear someone else think I succeeded.

Thanks! I made him as sort of a dare. I had seen so many bad Child of Bloody Mary OCs, usually falling on the gross side and dripping with blood, that I challenged myself to see if I could come up with one that could fit into the "real" Monster High world. It means a lot to hear someone else think I succeeded.

I was just about to comment on how clever his design is - I love the idea of a Bloody Mary character with mirror skin. :)

I'm currently working on three dolls. I'm slow (work full time, business owner), so I figured starting now would be smart.

All three of these are going to be Christmas gifts for the creators of the characters shown. I did the art using their specifications.

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v409/BDBastarde/Peggyfinal.png)Peggy Springwell, daughter of Pegasus, is being made using one of the original Werewolf CAM dolls. She's getting a pair of wings from Plastic Curves and I'll be casting her new horse ears off of an Avea Trotter head.

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v409/BDBastarde/Harryfinal.png)Harry Herne, son of the Erlking, is being made using a Porter Geiss doll. He's going to feature glow in the dark spots on his skin and some metallic gold elements on his pants.

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v409/BDBastarde/ShadFinal.png)Shadeaux "Shad" D. Gloom, son of a Sackman Boogieman, is using a Ghoul Spirit Slo-Mo doll. Similar to Twyla, he'll have glow in the dark eyes and shadowy tendrils going up his skin.

I'll take some progress pictures tonight. So far I have the bodies primed and a good amount of the hair rooting done.

Holy smokes - these are amazing! Did you custom sculpt the conjoined twins' torso?

I did, though it was inspired by another customizer who came up with the idea of the two-headed torso. I sawed the neck joints off of two torsos and puttied them back onto one torso offset slightly so two heads could fit. I put a metal pin in each neck joint and used Milliput to putty them back on, so the joint is incredibly strong and the heads have the full range of motion with no fear of breakage.

Peggy's body has been fully painted and sealed. She actually has a slight texture to simulate her furryness, though it is not flocked. She was painted with a pearlescent gray paint, and then oversprayed from a distance with a white primer to give her the flecked look.

Her shoes are about 80% done, I need to attach the horseshoe heels. The heels are resin castings made from a modified Equestria Girls hairclip thingie. The shoes themselves are modified from Poppy O'Hair.

The chess pieces are an accessory of the character; she likes throwing smoke bombs shaped like chess knights to escape danger or awkward situations. They're cast from a piece from a Kamikaze Kaitou Jeanne doll I had from ages ago.

Pictures are raw, but here they are!(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v409/BDBastarde/24E2C11E-8F6B-47D3-9841-FC0C31CAC67C.jpg)(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v409/BDBastarde/AA179283-30AE-4BE4-A814-DAA08EBF4DEE.jpg)(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v409/BDBastarde/4B2B2536-9D03-4284-9D1E-358470689B05.jpg)(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v409/BDBastarde/58BACF55-AF4D-4812-96B9-52FE29F79F31.jpg)(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v409/BDBastarde/7BA3B863-B37B-4D4A-B2D0-625C15DB65AD.jpg)(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v409/BDBastarde/BFFD805F-2EA5-4113-A328-2B7CD91D67AA.jpg)(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v409/BDBastarde/27B6F6D7-F08E-4E0F-819E-421A91339A8B.jpg)

Omg! He is so cool, I love the detail you put into your customs like the little accessories and the painted eyes on his pants. Who is he supposed to be? At first glance he looks like a boogey-person like Twyla

Omg! He is so cool, I love the detail you put into your customs like the little accessories and the painted eyes on his pants. Who is he supposed to be? At first glance he looks like a boogey-person like Twyla

He is a "Sack Man", which is a variation on the Boogeyman legend. They were said to kidnap naughty kids in their sacks, which is why Shadeax has a big rucksack bag. Shad is a sensitive soul with a beat poet heart, and his sack was made out of his childhood blankie, which is why it is all patched.

His full name is Shadeax "Shad" D. Gloom. He's a Christmas gift for his creator.

Your customs are, without a doubt, THE most amazing customs I've ever seen! They're so insanely unique, but they look like they were factory made, authentic dolls and hardly even customs!Definitely following this, looking forward to any more you post in the future!

Hi, I'm the creator of Marceline and as of today, this doll is mineeee! :D :D :D

I just picked her up today from the post office and I am just so speechless... it's one thing to have a custom doll based on your OC, but it's another entirely to have one done at this stunning level of quality! It's such an honor to have one of your customs as part of my collection, after fangirling so hard over your work for the past 4 years! Thank you a million times over, she's perfect in every way! :D

Her boots were originally Abbey's fashion pack skates. The backpack was Abbey's School's Out backpack. The belt was from Gilda Goldstag. The shirt was painted with puffy paints for that 'mossy' look, and all of her gray parts (boot heels, backpack, belt buckle and horns) were sprayed with a granite texture spraypaint so they'd look like stone.

Your dolls are simply amazing! She really does look like she came off the factory line with that excellent repainting work you've done and the attention to details in their clothes. You are very talented.

I've been doing work on my next custom-a little gremlin named Lin McGearloch. He's my take on what a Little Brother body should look like. Tonight I have just a preview of the finished body...no clothes yet! I'll talk more about his construction tomorrow. I'm just so excited with how he's turning out, I had to share!

Lin McGearloch is complete!(http://i.imgur.com/E7Wuy27.jpg)More completed pics are under this spoiler tag.

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Lin was made using a Flash Sentry Equestria Girls doll heavily modified with Monster High Boy CAM parts. The hands, head and feet were shrunk using the acetone method. Overall, he stands nearly two inches shorter than a standard boy doll. amd about an inch and a half shorter than a standard girl doll. He's about the same height as a little sister body.

He came together really well! My only complaint is the soft, cheap plastic Flash Sentry's arms were made of did not take paint very well and took a lot of sanding and work to get to a final finish. But in the end, he came out fantastic.

It's been sooooo long since I've updated! But now I have another boy to share. This was made as a Christmas gift for Kustom Kara.

This is her alien pop star boy, Roswell Gray! She created him a few years ago, before Astranova or even Catty Noir existed, and now I've finally had a chance to render him in 3D form for her.

(http://i.imgur.com/1to2mU8.jpg)

Roswell was made from Invisi Billy with a partial reroot, a new faceup, and his entire body repainted with a metallic blue-gray. His guitar, belt buckle, shoes and kneepads all glow in the dark. More pictures are under the spoiler tag.

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I'll have something else to post before the end of the year, as well ;)

I'm so jelly. I want him. He may be one of my favorite custom dolls I've ever seen. I seriously love your customs, they look like they came right from the factory and they're so professional-looking :)

I'm curious as to how you repainted the bodies and heads. :) Did you use spray paint? Any sealer?

I prime the bodies with a krylon plastic-friendly primer and then airbrushed these guys. The heads are painted without priming - the paint adheres really well to soft vinyl. They are sealed with Testors Dullcote on the bodies and Mister Super Clear matte on the heads.

Some of my past dolls have been either hand-painted or I've used spray paint. It's taken a lot of trial and error over the years to figure out what works and what doesn't. ^^; I haven't had the 'chipping joints' problem a lot of people talk about though, so my technique seems to be working.

It's been a long time since I last posted...I stopped giving updates because no one seemed to care or reply for the last 6-8 months. :shrug:

Now that Photobucket has gone bad, though, I will have to go through and re-upload all of my pictures on another service. :annoyed: So I thought I might as well update with images of the last couple things I've finished and a teaser for my most recent project. If I don't get any responses this time, though, I'll get the hint and stop posting updates altogether.

Up first, my Basic Silvi Timberwolf custom, based off of her non-Electrified look. This was a pretty quick custom, but it fulfills my need for a signature version of Silvi in my collection!

(https://i.imgur.com/UE60S19.jpg)

(https://i.imgur.com/sQYOqpx.jpg)

(https://i.imgur.com/kJ2qBur.jpg)

Second, KustomKara and I did a project swap - both of us had customs we were stuck on, and we decided to swap them with each other to finish. I sent her my four-armed fuzzy moth ghoul, and she sent me her Big Sister Bear ghoul. The results are great!

Here are pictures of Luna Duskwing, who I send as just a naked ghoul with rooted hair. She did the clothes, the hairstyle and the final face paint.

(http://i.imgur.com/iY1ay1l.jpg)

Pictures of the Bear Sister Ghoul will be updated tonight.

I'm also in the middle of progress on a hybrid Vampire/Witch ghoul. Here are some teaser progress pictures...

(http://i.imgur.com/8x82bzN.jpg)

(http://i.imgur.com/k97IBdA.jpg)

(http://i.imgur.com/9qPX0dE.jpg)

Finally, here is a teaser for my current project. It is a new Signature doll, and you can probably guess who it is...

Oh my gosh, and here I was thinking "Kara Zor-El didn't upload anything for a looong time... I wonder what is she up to?" Must have been some hiccup with my browser not showing "new" sign - I'm lazy to check last post date ^^;Seriously, I didn't see anything since the last time I posted here (and now I think it happened with many other threads...). I love your new creatures! Sig Silvi looks fabulous (I wish Mattel did this), Luna is PERFECT, and could you turn me into vampire witch, pretty please? Oh, and can't wait to see Johnny... THERE ARE EVEN REAL STRIIINGS! Well, not real real, but you get what I mean. Definitely keep us updated, your work is awesome!

Johnny is about 90% done, and I can't wait to finish him and show off because (boasting) I think he's maybe the best Johnny Spirit custom out there... :blush:

When I'm not doing MH customs, I do customs in other styles. I don't know if anyone here is familiar with Mego action figures from the 1970's, but I've done several customs in that style of my favorite retro heroes.

(http://i.imgur.com/fNoVeAx.jpg)

Brainiac Five, Ms. Marvel, Power Girl, and Supergirl from the 1982 movie.

As always, your customs are breathtaking and look factory made! Your Silvi looks wonderful! If she had actually been released like that, she would've grabbed my attention.And your witch vampire is so super cool and very unique! I'm trying to pick my favourite features about her but I really can't, every part of her is just so amazing!

I'm pretty happy with the final product, I used Haunted as most of my inspiration to capture his look, which is why he has a Haunted stand.

The jacket is from a Shibajuku Girls fashion pack, altered in a few ways to better fit an MH body and to match Johnny's style.

The shirt and pants were hand-sewn, and the 'fade to blue' effect was done by using a small spray bottle with bleach to whiten the fabric near the edge, and then a spray bottle with light blue paint in it to color the bottom.

The shoes are originally from the Student Disembody Slo-Mo. His head is Heath Burns, and the arms are replacements I bought from the Mattel customer service shop (I believe they're supposed to replace the Maul Invisi Billy we never saw in the US).

The violin was an eBay find. I had to get the bow from a separate auction because the bow that came with the violin was uuuuugly.

Fun fact: Johnny has a piece of foam packing peanut in his hair to keep it tall.

This is the last MH doll I'll be doing for a little bit, as I begin work on my first Pullip/Taeyang custom!

I particularly love his pompadour. XD Good idea with the packing peanut! Foam-core is a staple of human-scale wig styling, as well (at least in cosplay, lol). I hadn't ever thought of using it for a doll's hair!

And the fading on the jeans is so perfect! *o* I can't believe you did that with a spray bottle!

It took two tries before I figured out the spray bleach technique, but I was surprised how WELL it worked too! It was one of those 'I'll give it a shot but I'm probably going to just make a mess' experiments that just happened to succeed.

Yaaaaay looking good! I LOVE Ursa! I've not been as consistently active and missed a lot of Customs so please keep posting! I love seeing g other artists work! Will you be posting your non MH Customs too (please!)?

Yaaaaay looking good! I LOVE Ursa! I've not been as consistently active and missed a lot of Customs so please keep posting! I love seeing g other artists work! Will you be posting your non MH Customs too (please!)?

I'm working on getting my pics switched over from Photobucket to Imgur, but then I'll upload some more of my non-MH custom work! And I'll for sure update as I work on my Taeyang custom...I'm sure I'll need advice from the experienced Pullip customizers on the board.

Since Mattel isn't going to give them to us, I also plan on making my own take on Pharoah and Raythe too. I just need to settle on what the best base elements for each will be as I want them to be able to fit into their respective lines like they wer factory dolls, just like Johnny Spirit and the Haunted line.

I love Raythe! I can't wait to see what you'll do with him, because he's going to be spectacular. Also super looking forward to your Taeyang. You customs always look like factory originals, just better, and Groove face-ups are great, so I'm really curious how he'll turn up!

Hey Kara, my July has been crazy-busy, and SOMEHOW I have overlooked the BOO-LICIOUSNESS that is your recent custom work you've been posting. Can I just say....shreiktacular! Clawsome!

I'll go drool, I mean look, some more later. I REALLY enjoy and appreciate your posts/pics and that you help others with tips, tricks, ideas, inspiration. Sorry you've felt under-appreciated. I appreciate you!

And a lovely idea on the custom-swap, with great results. Those two deserve their own thread with pics and info!

Can't wait to see your reroot! I gave Seth a hair trim after that picture to the final length. It looks pretty good. I'm currently working on printing his mummy wraps; I don't like the look some people have gone for on Seth of wrapping ribbon or linen strips and gluing them to his body. My Seth will have printed mummy wraps similar to Cleo and Nefera's signature looks.

In the meantime, here's a picture of the Gen 2 body for Raythe. It's funny how much bulkier G2 boys are!

Can't wait to see your reroot! I gave Seth a hair trim after that picture to the final length. It looks pretty good. I'm currently working on printing his mummy wraps; I don't like the look some people have gone for on Seth of wrapping ribbon or linen strips and gluing them to his body. My Seth will have printed mummy wraps similar to Cleo and Nefera's signature looks.

In the meantime, here's a picture of the Gen 2 body for Raythe. It's funny how much bulkier G2 boys are!

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That was something that struck me from the beginning of the reboot: the girls all look younger. The boys all look older. It's ... odd. To say the least.

Nice work on the WIPs, though! I can't wait to see the finished dolls! And your styling on Brainiac's hair is seriously awesome.

That's interesting.. a friend told me that they had different body molds and another person from mharena said that their arms were the only difference. ( hopefully I don't have to remake this jacket since I just finished it in time for reboot clawd's shipment -_- )

I'm always blown away by your amazing customs! Now I get inspired to take care of my own as well. Keep up the amazing work! ♡♡

Thanks! I hope to see some of your work soon!

I've started rooting Raythe, and will be screen printing the bandages for Seth's shirt this week. Hopefully I'll have some update pics afterwards. This is my first time using a special type of Sun-activated dye to print a design on knit fabric for Seth's bandage pattern; crossing my fingers it turns out well.

Love your Seth and Dracula WIPs!I see you made (what looks like?) a shirt to represent his wrappings. I have been looking for a good fabric that has mummy wrapping print and wondered where you found yours?

Love your Seth and Dracular WIPs!I see you made (what looks like?) a shirt to represent his wrappings. I have been looking for a good fabric that has mummy wrapping print and wondered where you found yours?

This has a really really long answer; apologies ahead of time.

Seths wrappings are a simple white cotton knit. The pattern is actually identical to Cleos bandages. I found the pattern online and imported it into Photoshop to convert it into black and white.

The pattern is actually transferred onto the knit using a technique similar to screen printing called Sundye. Sun dye is made by a company called Jacquard who make a lot of dye products. By turnin my Photoshop of Cleos bandage pattern into a negative and printing it onto clear film, I made a film negative that I used in the sun dying process to transfer the pattern onto the fabric to make his shirt.

Sun Dye involves painting the dye on a fabric, putting the negative on top and then leaving it out in the sun for 20 minutes or so. Then after washing, the pattern stays behind. This was my first time trying this technique and it took a couple tries. I could do it again and probably get a clearer pattern, but I was happy enough with what I got this one to use it for Seths bandages.

I just really disliked the solution others used of wrapping him in ribbons or bandages. I can only imagine that limited his articulation and it just didn't look "factory" in my opinion, so I'm happy I discovered the Sun dye product.

Love your Seth and Dracular WIPs!I see you made (what looks like?) a shirt to represent his wrappings. I have been looking for a good fabric that has mummy wrapping print and wondered where you found yours?

This has a really really long answer; apologies ahead of time.

Seths wrappings are a simple white cotton knit. The pattern is actually identical to Cleos bandages. I found the pattern online and imported it into Photoshop to convert it into black and white.

The pattern is actually transferred onto the knit using a technique similar to screen printing called Sundye. Sun dye is made by a company called Jacquard who make a lot of dye products. By turnin my Photoshop of Cleos bandage pattern into a negative and printing it onto clear film, I made a film negative that I used in the sun dying process to transfer the pattern onto the fabric to make his shirt.

Sun Dye involves painting the dye on a fabric, putting the negative on top and then leaving it out in the sun for 20 minutes or so. Then after washing, the pattern stays behind. This was my first time trying this technique and it took a couple tries. I could do it again and probably get a clearer pattern, but I was happy enough with what I got this one to use it for Seths bandages.

I just really disliked the solution others used of wrapping him in ribbons or bandages. I can only imagine that limited his articulation and it just didn't look "factory" in my opinion, so I'm happy I discovered the Sun dye product.

Wow! I know custom artist invest incredible amount of time and creativity with the concept planning, design of face, face up work, reroots, restyling, and making accessories, taking care of every little thing plus the patience to go through every process that sometimes is fast an easy but most of the time is meticulously slow and long hours of steady and dedicated work, but reading it instead of just seeing the finish product makes it even more admirable. Congratulations for your dedication and for that incredible talent :)And thanks for sharing your creations with us.

Forgot to update you but it didn't fit at all. I even had to add some extra fabric to the back of the shirt I made for him to fit the arms through and for the velcro to work.. but I'm proud of what I made :) I made a basketball version of him but I still need to repaint the shoes. Uploading pictures soon...

Forgot to update you but it didn't fit at all. I even had to add some extra fabric to the back of the shirt I made for him to fit the arms through and for the velcro to work.. but I'm proud of what I made :) I made a basketball version of him but I still need to repaint the shoes. Uploading pictures soon...

Can't wait to see pictures!

For my updates, I've been working on Dracula. Please pardon my mess in these photos; my workspace is pretty cluttered right now.

Here is his hair completely rooted and styled:

Sorry but you are not allowed to view spoiler contents.

And I've made his pants and stockings. Currently I'm working on turning his vest from a back-velcroing atrocity into a front-opening, functioning vest.

Thanks everyone! I'm pretty eager to finish Drac and move on to Raythe. I also have just a couple things to finish on Seth Ptolemy, but I don't have any new progress pictures handy.

Also, I've been working on updating the first page with images moved over from Photobucket to Imgur, as well as adding some of the characters from later pages onto page 1. Just in case anyone wanted to see some of my past customs, slowly but surely they'll all be up there!

This looks so amazing! I love every one of your customs and am so eager to see Dracula finished.Seth looks amazing aswell! And I am so excited to see photos of Raythe eventually. I will forever wish Mattel would take tips from you.

If you don't mind me asking, roughly what might you charge if someone asked to have their own Dracula de-suckified?

I don't mind! However, I won't be able to give you an accurate answer till Monday if that's all right. I do commissions, but I won't be taking new ones until December at the earliest as I'm also doing a lot of Christmas projects right now, too.

I will warn that Drac's de-suckification isn't a cheap project...he already uses two dolls, needs a full reroot AND the clothing. They really made it a challenge.

I ran into a bit of a disaster with Seth - the printing process I used for his bandages seems to have discolored the fabric and turned it bluish! I tried to wash the bandage shirt, but it faded the lines so much that I'm going to have to start over on that part and think of a different way to do it. I'm bummed, but that's the learning process. ^^;

Every doll I make, I try to challenge myself and try a new technique or do things in a way I haven't done before. And sometimes, that means the technique doesn't work out.

In regards to Dracula, so people get an idea of the cost of making a de-sucked version, I'm going to itemize what I've gotten for him.

Other notions (elastic, thread, needles, rooting needles, liquid fusion for the top of his head):about $13

So, I've spent so far about $89 on supplies for this one doll! Some of these supplies will last long into other projects, like the fabric, paint, notions and such.

So, if I were to accept a commission to upgrade someone's Dracula, it wouldn't be an inexpensive upgrade because not only are there material costs, but my time as well. A full body repaint takes a minimum of 3 days (one full day between primer, paint and sealer), as well as the time to sand and prep the body. Rerooting a boy doll head takes about 12 hours, not including the time and work to make the head ready to be rerooting. The top of Dracula's head has a great big dip in it where his plastic hairpiece was attached, and that had to be filled with liquid fusion first, which takes a few days.

For doing a Dracula, therefore, a commission would cost about $180. HOWEVER...that price could be lowered if the recipient provided a Dracula and a donor body, or was willing to forgo dying the vest, etc etc. That could pull the price down closer to $130 or even a bit less.

I greatly recommend Drac have a Gen2 body so that his vest fits and he looks 'correct,' but if someone couldn't get ahold of a Deuce doll they may be able to get a CAMpire body instead. That would require some changes to the 'recipe' for Drac, but the costs would stay about the same.

It will still be a while before I accept any commissions again, but December/Jan things should be clearer for me project-wise. I do plan on doing the following projects for my own collection next year:

Gory FangtellBram DeVeinQuill TalyntinoEuna from the cancelled EAH crossoverUpgrade Daring Charming to not suckUpgrade 3-eyed CAM to match her webisode appearanceHarriet Wolf (if they don't make a doll for her by then)

Dracula looks great so far! Forgive me if you've already said this, but are you going to be altering his face up at all? Personally I think his lips look a bit...Off, a bit too full and feminine if that makes sense? If I were customizing him I'd do something about it, but this is your project and not mine, and I was just curious. XD

His lips are darker than most boy dolls but I'm not too bothered by them. I've gone back and forth on whether or not to paint on the 5 o'clock shadow he has in the cgi movies or not...that may help counterbalance the darkness of his lips.

Other notions (elastic, thread, needles, rooting needles, liquid fusion for the top of his head):about $13

So, I've spent so far about $89 on supplies for this one doll! Some of these supplies will last long into other projects, like the fabric, paint, notions and such.

So, if I were to accept a commission to upgrade someone's Dracula, it wouldn't be an inexpensive upgrade because not only are there material costs, but my time as well. A full body repaint takes a minimum of 3 days (one full day between primer, paint and sealer), as well as the time to sand and prep the body. Rerooting a boy doll head takes about 12 hours, not including the time and work to make the head ready to be rerooting. The top of Dracula's head has a great big dip in it where his plastic hairpiece was attached, and that had to be filled with liquid fusion first, which takes a few days.

For doing a Dracula, therefore, a commission would cost about $180. HOWEVER...that price could be lowered if the recipient provided a Dracula and a donor body, or was willing to forgo dying the vest, etc etc. That could pull the price down closer to $130 or even a bit less.

Thanks so much for the price estimates! <3 I would absolutely love to commission you for Drac once you open back up if that's okay! Your work is absolutely amazing, I've always deeply admired it, and that's a really reasonable price, especially the price for BYOD (Bring Your Own Drac... lmao)

I just love admiring your work! :love:Factory-look customs are pretty much the only kind of customs I like, so your thread is like eye candy to me, haha.I'm trying to work up the courage to start on a few factory-look customs as well, though it's probably going to take me a while before I get as good as you, keep up the AWESOME work! :biggrin:

Mmmmnyes. This is the sort of attention to detail and work quality I'd expect from a SDCC exclusive. I love that you've added so many tiny details in 3D, down to the buttons on his spats/socks/I'm not sure what to even call the silly things.

I noticed on Draconia St. George's dress too there is a bow with a skullete in the middle of it.. it looks like first wave operetta's jacket skullette. Do you know where you got it from? If you do know I would love to know because that's one of the pieces I'm missing..Also, on Kei Merha there is a green thing in the background? Is that his tail or something? Looks really cool :0 I think my favorite of your customs so far is the son of the gremlins :) he looks really detailed!

Thanks for the kind words! Draconias skullette is actually a epoxy putty copy of the one from Ghoulia's signature shirt. And yes, Kai Merha has a reptilian tail...he's a chimera made of monster DNA. His dad is a mad scientist, and there was a lab accident :biggrin:

Wow, thanks for the kind words! If you need any advice working on your own customs, please let me know! I love all the talented customizers on this board!

No problem - thankyou so much for the offer! :blush:I'm not quite at the stage of creating my customs just yet, super nervous about trying a repaint, but I'll be sure to contact you when I make that plunge, haha ^^;Also Dracula looks AMAZING now, very regal like he should be, love it!

Wow, thanks for the kind words! If you need any advice working on your own customs, please let me know! I love all the talented customizers on this board!

No problem - thankyou so much for the offer! :blush:I'm not quite at the stage of creating my customs just yet, super nervous about trying a repaint, but I'll be sure to contact you when I make that plunge, haha ^^;Also Dracula looks AMAZING now, very regal like he should be, love it!

Thank you again for your super kind words.

I can give you some important advice right now...don't be afraid to make mistakes! Almost anything you do can be fixed on these dolls, and every mistake you make teaches you something important.

Dracula here? I had to repaint his body THREE times, because the sealer I was using actually bleached the pink color out of his skin! I couldn't figure out why he was fading to bone white till I realized that the solvent in Testors Dullcote was reacting with the fleuorescent pink pigment in the paint. When I switched to MSC as a sealer, the paint looked fine.

Every doll I've made has had challenges like that and some of them I had to restart from scratch, or put away for a while before looking at them again with fresh eyes. So don't be discouraged or intimidated to start; even making a mistake is progress and helps bring you to your end goal!

Thanks for the kind words! Draconias skullette is actually a epoxy putty copy of the one from Ghoulia's signature shirt. And yes, Kai Merha has a reptilian tail...he's a chimera made of monster DNA. His dad is a mad scientist, and there was a lab accident :biggrin:

What brand and type of epoxy putty do you use? Epoxy putty seems like it would be hard solid and difficult to get her skullete back out.. also what do you use to actually make the skullette? I'm thinking polymer clay or air dry if those would work?

What brand and type of epoxy putty do you use? Epoxy putty seems like it would be hard solid and difficult to get her skullete back out.. also what do you use to actually make the skullette? I'm thinking polymer clay or air dry if those would work?

My apologies, I think my explanation wasn't clear enough!

The actual skullette is made out of epoxy putty (Milliput, specifically). I made a press-mold of the skullette using a wonderful moldmaking material called Instant Mold.

Instant Mold is a silicone-based plastic putty that becomes soft and malleable in hot water. It's excellent for creating push-molds of plastic accessories or small items. Once it cools, it becomes hard (but still semiflexible) and it takes on detail extremely well. So, I took Ghoulia's skullette, pressed it into some warm Instant Mold, and when it cooled and I removed the Skullette, I had a perfect mold to stick some Milliput in.

I've used this technique several times for small items, like Peggy Springwell's ears (molded off of Avea Trotter's) and Draconia St. George's belt buckle (which was molded off of a piece of anovelty eraser, believe it or not). It saves me the trouble of having to make a silicone mold and cast resin into it for small items (though I do that too)!

What brand and type of epoxy putty do you use? Epoxy putty seems like it would be hard solid and difficult to get her skullete back out.. also what do you use to actually make the skullette? I'm thinking polymer clay or air dry if those would work?

My apologies, I think my explanation wasn't clear enough!

The actual skullette is made out of epoxy putty (Milliput, specifically). I made a press-mold of the skullette using a wonderful moldmaking material called Instant Mold.

Instant Mold is a silicone-based plastic putty that becomes soft and malleable in hot water. It's excellent for creating push-molds of plastic accessories or small items. Once it cools, it becomes hard (but still semiflexible) and it takes on detail extremely well. So, I took Ghoulia's skullette, pressed it into some warm Instant Mold, and when it cooled and I removed the Skullette, I had a perfect mold to stick some Milliput in.

I've used this technique several times for small items, like Peggy Springwell's ears (molded off of Avea Trotter's) and Draconia St. George's belt buckle (which was molded off of a piece of anovelty eraser, believe it or not). It saves me the trouble of having to make a silicone mold and cast resin into it for small items (though I do that too)!

No need to apologize! I should have been more specific that I was going to make it too haha.

Instant mold? I'll have to look at that at Walmart. Sounds cool :oI don't know about hazards of milliput.. also idk if I will be able to find it. Is there a good alternative? Would polymer or air dry clay work?

I honestly should do this for cupid's ring incase I ever lose it then sell the original for same price I'd get it for haha. One more question. Is there another material that makes the accessories feel squishy like the factory? I know operetta's skullete thing won't need it but maybe for something else..

No need to apologize! I should have been more specific that I was going to make it too haha.

Instant mold? I'll have to look at that at Walmart. Sounds cool :oI don't know about hazards of milliput.. also idk if I will be able to find it. Is there a good alternative? Would polymer or air dry clay work?

I haven't worked with polymer clay in years due to my frustration with its properties after baking, so I don't know how well it would work for this. Air dry clay has shrinkage issues, doesn't it? I haven't worked with that in a long long time either.

I generally stick to Milliput, Apoxy Sculpt and Instant Morph these days as my main sculpting materials, because they either cure hard and can be sanded and painted, or in the case of instant morph, stay flexible after cooling so I don't have to worry about it breaking. For me, polymer clay was too unreliable after baking, and couldn't be applied to doll parts and baked without becoming crumbly and fragile, or reacting underneath paint layers and becoming sticky.

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I honestly should do this for cupid's ring incase I ever lose it then sell the original for same price I'd get it for haha. One more question. Is there another material that makes the accessories feel squishy like the factory? I know operetta's skullete thing won't need it but maybe for something else..

What you're asking about is, if there is any material that can be molded and sculpted and played with, but also be flexible like plastic accessories, and there is! That's what Instant Morph is.

Instant Morph are plastic beads that become clear, soft and pliable when placed in boiling water. Once they've been boiled and turn clear, you can mold it, roll it, and play with it a bit to make shapes or press into hard molds (it is NOT compatible with Instant Mold). Once it cools, it becomes a stiff but flexible plastic again.

Another advantage is, if you heat up plastic accessories or shoes by placing them in boiling water for a bit, instant morph will STICK to the parts and you can build up details! When it cools, the Instant Morph elements will be flexible, but still stuck to the plastic parts without having to use any glue. This is really valuable for building up shoes with new details, but keeping them able to be taken on and off.

I hope this is useful information. Let me know if you have any other questions!

So, I'm sitting on several projects that I've either started, gotten partway through, or have gathered the materials for. I'm feeling a little bit overwhelmed as I also have some Christmas presents to make. But I want to make headway on these projects.

So! If anyone could help me out...which project would you guys like to see me work on/finish first? I'd be sure to give progress updates like I did for de-suckifying Dracula.

1) Gory Fangtell (http://vignette2.wikia.nocookie.net/monsterhigh/images/a/a9/Gory_Fangtell.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20160910193120)! I have a CAM vampire ready to start transforming into the mean girl vampire from Fright On and other webisodes. This will be a pretty quick project, as all she needs is a reroot and an outfit.

2) Quill Talyntino (https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/monsterhigh/images/2/2d/Shockumentary_-_bird_girl.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20120111112500)! She was part of the voting poll a few years ago with Finnegan Wake and Gory Fangtell. This doll will require some resculpting, a reroot, an outfit and a full body repaint to bring to life.

3) Raythe (https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-fhCP30wVi7U/V8dN_87PHxI/AAAAAAAA40E/3qPSbJkD0UIJgB-xly5v_99SsNJMjAaTgCLcB/s1600/14117829_1309033862441465_1120707479056466334_n.png)! I already have Raythe's body painted and some of his accessories purchased.

4) Seth "Pharoah" Ptolemy (https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/monsterhigh/images/8/89/Seth_Ptolemy_3D.png/revision/latest/scale-to-width-down/220?cb=20160825165104)! This doll is partly done, but ran into some problems when the bandage shirt I made for him faded and turned blue. I need to rethink my strategy on finishing him.

5) Remixing Galactic Gala Supergirl (https://target.scene7.com/is/image/Target/52139827?wid=520&hei=520&fmt=pjpeg)! This doll was a huge disappointment to me, and I intend to reroot her, repaint some of her elements, and redo parts of her dress to make her into a truly deluxe doll.

6) Articulated, webisode-accurate Fangelica (https://vignette4.wikia.nocookie.net/monsterhigh/images/6/6a/Fangelica.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20170827003013)! By using a Enchantimals body with knee joints, I'm looking to transform Fangelica into a more dynamic, poseable doll. I already have some of her body parts hacked apart and ready for reattachment to her new body.

So, if you have interest in my customs, please let me know - which project would you like to see first?

I've hand painted several dolls before I got the airbrush, but I use the airbrush now because it gives such nice, even results.

Even if you're hand-painting, I recommend sanding and priming before putting on that color layer to prevent this chipping problem people seem to have, followed by a top sealing coat like Dullcote or Mister Super Clear. Chipping has never been an issue for me, and I think it's because of this procedure.

Thanks! I was going to make Gory later, then I discovered that the Reboot Signature Draculaura's earrings are essentially identical to the ones Gory is supposed to have, and it just got me on a whole quest to finish Gory up. I even gave her a pet from the reboot pet line, because I felt like it fits her personality so well.

Sure! Alivia is a work in progress, Iím working on eventually making her look more like her animated self. In these pics you can see Iíve been touching up Gigawatt and doing her stitches. I need to print out/sew her jumpsuit, but it will be after Iím done with Quill and Pharoah.

I love the last photo with all three fan vote dolls standing side by side:)

I would have voted for Gory dead last, as she seemed like such a simple doll, but seeing your custom makes me realize, if Mattel had done her well, she could have been a beautiful doll. I'm surprised that she's my favorite, when I wasn't interested in her in the slightest.

Quill turned out really nice. I love all the feather details and her outfit looks perfect. Great job, as always:)

Thanks! I agree that, once I had all three of them as dolls, I appreciated Gory and Quill a lot more. I still think that fans made the right choice to have Finnegan get made. He's just so unique that it's amazing a doll that's male, disabled, and a completely new mold got manufactured. I still wish the other two had found a way to make it to production, though.

Quill's recipe: She's made from the Harpie CAM head and lower legs, and her lower arms and wings from Avea Trotter. It's not so obvious in pictures, but she's actually pretty neon yellow in person - I figured that as a bird person, she is more related to parakeets and parrots than any sort of bird of prey, so she's the same color as a tennis ball, just like those cute pet parakeets.

Hi Kara,I've been away from the Arena for awhile, and just checked in to see your customs thread - oh such wonderful eye candy! Really enjoyable to see such great dolls and quality in the execution! Thank you!

I'm not familiar with Quill, but I shall google her now. Thanks for the explanation of her being part of the voting with Finnegan, that's helpful.

Also, great info on the molding/sculpting products! Thank you!

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I also really ADORE Gory and her new poodle Garlick (great name choice!!)

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I'm also working on my revamped Intergalactic Gala Supergirl. She's been rerooted and her outfit is partially done. I'm still working on her cape.

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Also, here is an early sneak peak at the progress on Quill Talyntino, who should be getting her body painted later this week. I'm about halfway done with her at this point.

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And finally, thanks for the info about airbrushing - e.g., sanding joints before painting, using primer, applying sealer afterward. What are you using for sanding the joints? And are you using a respirator when air-brushing? What product(s) do you recommend for primer with acrylics? THANK YOU!!

AH! Quill looks amazing! I love the different fabric textures you've used for her outfit and the moulded feather front/rooted back hair combo, it looks totally factory! Your work always inspires me :blush:On a side note, given how simple her design is, to you reckon we would have gotten an officially-released Quill in the same manner as we got Gilda? Included in a multi-pack? Interesting to think about all that could have been (like those planned Monster Exchange ghouls, agh!) :P

And finally, thanks for the info about airbrushing - e.g., sanding joints before painting, using primer, applying sealer afterward. What are you using for sanding the joints? And are you using a respirator when air-brushing? What product(s) do you recommend for primer with acrylics? THANK YOU!!

Thanks for all the love! I use either Testors sanding films or Tamiya sanding sponges. They have extremely fine grits and are reusable over and over again. They also work great with wet sanding, which gives a smoother finish and doesn't kick up dust like dry sanding does.

I absolutely recommend wearing a respirator when airbrushing. The particles are very small, and if you're spraying anything that's not water-based, it's going to have solvents in it as well.

For priming before painting, I usually use a krylon primer intended for plastics. I usually don't prime vinyl parts (like the heads) since the paint adheres very well and sometimes the vinyl will react with a spray paint and stay sticky forever.

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AH! Quill looks amazing! I love the different fabric textures you've used for her outfit and the moulded feather front/rooted back hair combo, it looks totally factory! Your work always inspires me :blush:On a side note, given how simple her design is, to you reckon we would have gotten an officially-released Quill in the same manner as we got Gilda? Included in a multi-pack? Interesting to think about all that could have been (like those planned Monster Exchange ghouls, agh!)

Thanks! I do think they would have tried to slide Gilda in to a multi-pack, or maybe into an SDCC exclusive if the line hadn't started winding down and gotten rebooted. Of the backgrounders, she was one of the most prominent ones.

Thanks for the sanding, etc., info. I found a box of airbrushing parts left in the alley, probably when someone moved & didn't want to take them. Need to sort out what's there and what I need to get, but I'm excited about trying it on some dolls.